G-eorg wilhelm kraft



(No Model.) G. Wl KRAFT.

FURNAGB.

160.666,774. Patented Sept. l, 1896.

Z t t .r l n Witnesse 'ms cams PETERS co PHOTO-Lima, vwsnmsou, n c,

UNITED STATES GEORG YVILl-IELM KRAFT,

OF DRESDEN, GERMANY.

FU RNACE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 566,774, datedSeptember l, 1896.

Application filed lllarch 9, 1895. Serial No. 541,151. (No model.)Iatented in Germany May 2, 1804, No. 79,015; in France July 25, 1894,No. 240,300; in England October 23,1894,No. 20,260; in Austria January7, 1895,1i'o. iii/386, and in Hungary January 9, 1895, No. 2,035.

To @Z whom it inlay concern:

Beit known thatLGEoRe WILHELM KRAFT, engineer, of l0 An derZiegelscheune,Dresden, Saxony, in the Empire of Germany, have inventedImprovements in or in Connection with Smoke-Consuming Hopper-FedFireplaces of Variable Size, (for which I have obtained Letters Patentin Germany, No. 79,015, dated May 2,1804; in France, No. 240,300, datedJuly 25, 139e; in Great Britain, No. 20,260, dated October 23, 1894; inAustria, No. A.t5/38h, dated January 7, 1895, and in Hungary, No. 2,035,dated January 9, 1895;) and I do hereby declare that the following is afull, clear, and exact description of my invention, reference being hadtherein to the accompanying drawings.

Inclined grates have heretofore been employed for smoke-consumingfireplaces in which the coal supplied to a hopper above is allowed toslide down automatically by its own weight at a rate proportioned to therate of combustion of the lower portion of the coal on the grate. Whilethere is a bright fire in the grate the smoke resulting from thegasifica-tion of the coal contained in the feed-hopper or in the shaftfire-space connected thereto is consumed or burned up in its passageover the incandescent coals but the inclined hopper-fed furnaces now inexistence only act in an effective manner when the dimensions of thegrate are exactly proportioned to the amount of fuel Which is to besupplied to it in a short time and when the operation of thefurnacegrate or fireplace or the demands made are uniform. Increasing ordiminishing the intensity of the lire has been possible only to a Veryslight extent with the so-called smokeless or smoke-consuming furnacesor fireplaces hitherto employed, and in such cases the proper combustionof the smoke has always been disturbed.

So far as I am aware, no one has yet been successful in providinghopper-fed furnaces or fireplaces which would always equally wellconsume their smoke when the rate of combustion has been varied, thatisto say, at times more intense and at times less intense.

My present invention has for its object to provide a smokeless furnacein which the amount or rate of combustion can be varied withoutinjuriously affecting its smoke-consuming action.

In the accompanying drawings my present invention is illustrated in twolongitudinal sections, e. Figure l showing the apparatus adjusted for asmall fire, and Fig. E showing the same adjusted for a large fire.

The inclined grate A has at its upper end the feed-hopper B, which maybe made funnel-shaped at top to facilitate the charging of coal therein.This feed-hopper is made adjustable in such a manner that by moving ithigher up or lower down it will cover a greater or less area of thegrate, thus enabling the grate surface or area to be varied.

The angle of inclination of the inclined* grate is made such that thecoal will not be caused to roll quickly down, but will advance graduallyforward in a uniform layer (depending in depth on the clear passagethrough the hopper) to the open portion of the grate,where it is burned,While fresh coal that has already become gasiied or heated in thefeed-hopper slides down as required to automatically replace the burnedcoal. The angle of inclination is preferably a little more than theangle of rest-1. c., a little more than the angle at which coal wouldnot move itself.

It is obvious that the greater the area or surface of the grate that isnot covered by the feed-hopper the greater will be the amount of coalwhich can be burned at one and the same time without affecting thecombustion and gasifying processes, and consequently without affectingthe combustion of the smoke in any way.

In the drawings the feed-hopper is shown actuated by means of thetoothed rack C on the under side thereof, which engages with a toothedwheel D, which in turn engages in the toothed rack E, fixed to the frameor support, this toothed wheel D being adapted to roll in engagementwith the toothed racks C and B on both sides. This toothed roller D isprovided with a catch or pawl F to retain the hopper at any desiredpoint, or any other welllinown or suitable mechanical device may beemployed .for this purpose.-

lli/*hat l claim, and desire to secure by Lotters Patent of the UnitedStates, is-

l. In a combustion-grate with feeding ap- ICO pliancefor-fuelwherein thearea of the burning-surface of the grate and-the area of the burninglayer of fuel may be varied, the coinbination of an inclined grate andan inclined feeding-box adapted to contain the fuel and feed it to thegrate, the box being placed upon the grate and` movable thereon for` thepurpose of increasing or diminishing the area of the grate and of thelayer of burning fuel Without altering the thickness of the layer ofburning fuel.

2. In a fireplace or furnace, the combination with a grate, of anadjustable hopper to contain andfeed the fuel to the grate provided Withthe rack C, the rack E, and a toothed Wheel D between the racks E and O

